There are several prominent men named Stephen Bishop:. Many of the Burzum albums feature illustrations by the Norwegian 19th
century artist Theodor Kittelsen (1857-1914). Vikernes has renounced any connection with black metal and heavy metal music in general. The
Filosofem (1996) album was released to the public after Vikernes had been
imprisoned. Both albums rely only on keyboards and - in Vikernes' own estimation - are not related to the black metal genre.

Vikernes has released two Burzum albums from prison: Dauši
Baldrs and Hlišskjįlf. He has expressed interest in Neo-Nazism
and has written several books dealing with his worldview. Vikernes
was formerly a member of the far-right extremist group "Hvit Arisk Motstand" ("White Aryan Resistance"), and was once involved with the "Norsk Hedensk
Front" ("Pan-Germanic Heathen Front"). Vikernes is suspected to have taken part in various
other crimes, and was believed to have been planning another church burning at the time of his arrest (police found 100 kg of explosives in his home).

Currently, Vikernes is in prison for the murder of his former friend and fellow musician Ųystein
Aarseth (Euronymous of Mayhem), as well as the arson of several ancient Norwegian churches. He has stated that the "message" of Burzum can
be found in the lyrics of the first song of the first album (Feeble Screams From Forests Unknown); that following lyrics
act as footnotes. Vikernes claims that the
intent to create this fantasy world came from dissatisfaction with the real world. Each LP or CD, he
claims, was designed as a kind of "spell" in itself, with each beginning song intending to make the listener more susceptible to
"magic", the following songs to inspire a "trance-like state of mind", and the last song to carry the listener into a "world of
fantasy" (dreams, for the listener would fall asleep - Burzum was supposed to have been evening music).

Vikernes
has described Burzum as a kind of "spell" or recreation of an imaginary world tied in with Pagan history. Vikernes' music is generally considered to be characterized by hypnotic repetition and simple
yet profound song structures; this trademark sound has been present on Burzum's black metal and synthieval albums alike. Musically, Burzum has progressed from primitive, raw black metal to
classical-influenced ambient music characterized by minimalist
tendencies and dark atmospheres. Much of Burzum's later work focuses on
Norse legends, especially his most recent two ambient albums: Dauši
Baldrs, which deals exclusively with the legend of the death of Baldr, and
Hlišskjįlf, which recounts the death of Wotan and the approach of Ragnarok.

As he continued to release albums, Vikernes' attraction to Norse mythology and
Pagan beliefs became more and more apparent. Some of Burzum's early songs
featured titles like "En Ring Til Å Herske" ("One Ring To Rule"); however, Vikernes later explained this to be a reference to the
Rheingold of Norse
mythology rather than to Tolkien's works. Burzum's early music shows a moderate Tolkien influence; for example, the name Count Grishnackh is taken from an orc
character called Grishnįkh in Tolkien's works. Varg intended the Burzum project
to be an anonymous effort, which was the reason behind his taking the name of Count Grishnackh.

Vikernes remained with Old Funeral for two
years, deciding in 1991 to create a solo project instead, in which he could write and
record a "more original and personal type of music" (some consider Burzum to be a progression of the band Uruk-Hai, for several
of the same riffs are used in Vikernes' compositions). Uruk-Hai's drummer and bassist, Vikernes claims, were neither serious nor
talented musicians, but this was not the case with the members of Old Funeral (who eventually went on to form the notorious black
metal group Immortal). In 1989, Vikernes broke away from Uruk-Hai to join
the death metal act Old Funeral. Tolkien.

R. R. Uruk-Hai is the name for the orc race of
Middle-earth from the works of J. In 1988 or 1989, Varg Vikernes formed a group
called Kalashnikov (named for the Kalashnikov assault rifle), which eventually changed its name to Uruk-Hai.

Aarseth, known
better to some by his stage name of Euronymous, played guitar for the well-known Norwegian black metal band Mayhem. Vikernes and his
project were instrumental in the crystallization of early black metal, much of which is due to the infamy attributed to Vikernes
since the murder of his rival Ųystein Aarseth. Vikernes is currently serving a prison sentence in Trondheim,
Norway for murder and arson. It was formed by Varg Vikernes (born Kristian Vikernes), under the name of Count
Grishnackh.